Peach and Blackberry Curl Recipe

If you’re not familiar with curl, it belongs to that wonderful family of rustic, old-fashioned desserts like chips, crumbles, and cobblers. It gets its name from the way the cake rises around the fruit during baking, causing the top to warp and wrinkle. This peach-blackberry curl, adapted from Flavors of the Southern Coast by Rick Rogers, is a summer favorite.

What I like most about this loop is how easy it is to use. You melt the butter directly in the baking dish, pour the batter on top without stirring, then sprinkle the fruit on top. As it bakes, the peaches and blackberries sink into the batter, creating soft, jammy pockets throughout the rich, buttery cake. It’s the perfect kind of dessert after a trip to the farm stand, especially served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

To make a peach and blackberry curl, you will need peaches, blackberries, light brown sugar, unsalted butter, all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, milk, and vanilla extract. Vanilla ice cream is optional for serving.

Step 1: Macerate the fruit. In a medium bowl, combine peaches, blackberries and brown sugar. Mix well and set aside while preparing the dough so that the fruits can release their juice.

Pro tip: Do not pour out the juice released by the fruit: these tasty juices become part of the dough while the loop cooks.

Step 2: Melt the butter. Put the butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet or 9-inch square pan and place it in a 350°F oven for about 5 minutes until melted, then carefully remove it (placing a kitchen towel over the handle if using a skillet as a reminder that it is hot).

Step 3: Prepare the dough. In another medium bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt; In a small bowl, whisk together the milk, egg and vanilla, then add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and whisk until the batter is smooth.

Step 4: Layer and bake. Pour the batter over the melted butter in the pan without mixing them, arrange the fruit evenly on top, pour the remaining juice over everything and bake for 50-60 minutes until golden brown.

Pro tip: Resist the urge to press the fruit into the dough. As the loop bakes, the fruit naturally sinks to just the right depth, creating pockets of juicy fruit throughout the cake.

Step 5: Cool and serve. Let the loop cool for 10 minutes, then serve warm, garnished with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, if desired. It’s best served hot out of the oven, but leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. Freeze for longer storage.